Schools of Excellence: The No. 1 ECE & Private School Leadership Podcast

As a leader, you’re well aware that being in your position can feel extremely isolating.    At times, it can feel like you’re stranded in the middle of the ocean on an island—alone, left to your own devices, and with no one to talk to for support and guidance.   That was Sheila Smozynski’s experience as the owner of two early childhood education centers when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.    COVID tur...

There’s a subtle but important difference between high standards and high expectations. Contrary to how it may feel, you can maintain high standards while still having developmentally appropriate expectations for the meeting of those standards. Let me give you an example to show you what I mean. When it comes to cleanliness standards in your center, you likely expect teachers to keep their classro...

There’s only so much time in the year, and most of it is already accounted for. After you add up necessary activities like eating, sleeping, and showering, you’re left with just 2,400 hours—that’s 2,400 hours that must cover everything from work projects to family time to enjoying life’s small pleasures. So, you have to ask yourself: What are you going to do with those 2,400 hours? To make the mos...

This is a special live-recorded episode to celebrate our 100th episode!   Being a leader is hard . It requires you to exercise new skills, make tough decisions, and have difficult conversations on a daily basis.   Periods of transition can be especially difficult. Whether it’s starting a new school year, training new teachers, or implementing a new routine, some days can feel—quite literally—painf...

Everyone experiences a variety of emotions throughout the day. Whether it’s anxiety before a dentist appointment, excitement when we find $20 in our pocket, or disappointment when our favorite coffee cup breaks, emotions come and go—and it’s entirely normal.   There’s no such thing as a good or bad emotion. They’re just feelings that come and go like clouds passing in the sky.   But for some peopl...

What does it mean to be generous?   Oftentimes the first thing people think of is financial generosity. They believe that to be a generous leader, they need to focus on philanthropy.   But while financial generosity is a type of generosity, it’s certainly not the only one. Sharing your knowledge, time, and resources is generous too, and the things you choose to share say a lot about who you are.  ...

One of the most important skills I help owners and directors develop is discernment. But…what exactly does that mean? Let me give you an example: Two different patients go to the doctor with a headache. One of the patients is suffering from a hangover, and the other has a brain aneurysm. How does the doctor properly diagnose and treat each patient? Discernment! Discernment is all about getting to...

Some of my biggest coaching Aha! moments happen when I talk to my kids.   Earlier this summer, my son came to my husband with a question that was bothering him. His friend hadn’t been accepted into summer camp, and he wanted to understand why.   My husband answered that, unfortunately, our son’s friend didn’t have anyone to advocate for him.   “What does it mean to ‘advocate’ for someone?” he aske...

One of the hallmarks of a great leader is how you understand and respond to emotions, and, then in turn, how that understanding helps you cultivate relationships.    Have you ever encountered these kinds of scenarios with your leadership team after staff meetings and retreats?    Someone on your leadership team was too afraid to mention something they didn’t agree with. Some members had questions...

Starting off the new school year on the right note will set up your school for excellence. As a school leader, the last thing you’d want is overloading your staff with content, hence the reason why you need to break it down into segments. And the segments are divided based on how the brain processes information.  In today’s episode, I share a segment of training that took place inside our Director...

Recently, I was reflecting on my parenting style and how it’s evolved over time.    As much as we think we’ll parent in our own unique way once we have little ones, we often do things just like our parents.   Can you relate?   There was a time, as a new mother, when I used blame and shame just as my parents had to set boundaries with me and my siblings.   I used their approach on my own children b...

As a school leader, you’re likely a pro at creating systems, processes, and checklists. You’ve trained your leadership team on them so things run more smoothly at your center—both inside and outside of the classroom. With these resources in place, you’re prepared for the school year and your team has what they need to handle issues that arise with students, parents, and co-teachers. Or so you thin...

This week I'm sharing a new 3-episode podcast series, How to Prepare for the New School Year, to give you strategies for navigating the first few weeks and months of the academic year. You'll learn how to take better care of yourself, your team, and your school community.   We'll explore the importance of prioritizing your daily routines to stay grounded and finding greater peace during the chaos...

This week I'm sharing a new 3-episode podcast series, How to Prepare for the New School Year, to give you strategies for navigating the first few weeks and months of the academic year. You'll learn how to take better care of yourself, your team, and your school community.   We'll explore the importance of prioritizing your daily routines to stay grounded and finding greater peace during the chaos...

This week I'm sharing a new 3-episode podcast series, How to Prepare for the New School Year, to give you strategies for navigating the first few weeks and months of the academic year. You'll learn how to take better care of yourself, your team, and your school community.   We'll explore the importance of prioritizing your daily routines to stay grounded and finding greater peace during the chaos...

This week on the podcast, I talk with Dr. Sherry Walling about how to find wholeness after loss and the ways you can support your team to overcome grief. You’ll learn how to offer connection and provide a glimmer of hope in the midst of sadness.   With Rosh Hashanah right around the corner, I’ve been thinking about some of my family’s cherished High Holiday rituals.   We light candles while reciti...

Are you prioritizing your mental wellbeing?   If you’re anything like the many directors and owners I’ve worked with, your answer probably depends entirely on the season.   Student enrollment? Staff hiring?   “ Forget about it, Chanie. ”   I know—I understand how it goes. When we’re caught up in a constant state of hypervigilance, we find it diffucult to slow down, rest, and take in life’s little...

Has a difficult conversation with someone at your school ever left you feeling guilty?   Me too.   I can recall times when the guilt was so intense that I just couldn’t shake it.    As a school leader, you can’t avoid difficult conversations.    Whether it’s with teachers who aren’t getting along, admin staff falling short of their performance goals, or something else, avoiding the problem is wors...

As a mom of four, it often feels like I’m supposed to have all the answers.   Whether it’s a homework problem, an argument with a friend, or making the monster under the bed go away, my kids trust that I’ll know exactly what to do.   When people look to you as a leader, it’s easy to put pressure on yourself to get it right every time. You may even fear that getting it wrong could have disastrous c...

How do you respond to difficult situations with parents? I know many resourceful school leaders just like you who Google solutions. But this approach is limited by what you can find on your own, and there’s always some trial-and-error involved with going it alone. When I need new ideas and solutions, I prefer to lean into the power of community. Instead of going it alone, I ask,  “Who can help me?...

There are few things more heartwarming than seeing a child beam with confidence after overcoming a challenge.   You can see the shift happen almost instantly—their eyes light up, they smile widely, and they stand just a little bit taller.   It’s as if they believe that from that moment forward, they can do anything they set their mind to.   Whether a child in the classroom or a staff member on you...

As a leader, you need to learn how to separate yourself from your team. Because if you try to stay at the same level as your teachers or the other staff, your business will implode.   In this special three-part series titled You Are Not the Only One , we open the closed doors to real stories of real people so we can start to normalize the struggle, the joy, the grief, and the milestones of what it...

When was the last time you felt truly seen?   I’m talking about the type of connection where you feel heard, validated, and unafraid of being judged—where you feel safe enough to be fully vulnerable.   For me, it was when I met up with my friend from high school during a conference in Dallas. We rented an Airbnb, ordered takeout, and hung out just like the old days.   We spent 18 hours in that Air...

Today’s episode will help enlighten you on planning the school year with discernment and wise decision-making filters. Because if we don't filter, everything becomes important, we then lack focus, and it's difficult to plan and be prepared. This invites chaos, uncertainty, and a lot of ambiguity into the day or year and doesn't allow us to follow through and be accountable. Understanding your busi...

This episode is from a live training where I share with you an interesting topic of the paradox of self-reliance and community.   Full schedules are not full lives. As leaders, we have to recognize that no one is coming to check on us or manage our workload. When we are stuck in our stories, our minds are trying to protect us and the ego wants to make our story unique to us; nobody has this level...